AUGUSTA, Maine — Not all homeowners along Maine’s coast can receive federal disaster relief money while recovering from back-to-back storms that lashed the state last week.
That is because the federal housing assistance that many Mainers may seek following historic flooding from Wednesday and Saturday storms only supports the repair or replacement of owner-occupied homes that serve as primary residences.
Maine, with its bustling summer tourism season, is a hotbed for second homes and also has the country’s highest share of vacant homes. People do not regularly live in more than a fifth of Maine homes, per U.S. Census data, and owner-occupancy rates are particularly low along the coastline and near recreational attractions such as ski areas and lakes.
It means seasonal, part-time or vacant residences in many coastal communities decimated by last week’s storms are ineligible for relief through the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which also does not cover damages sustained by small businesses. But apart from insurance options or grassroots relief efforts, Maine’s second homeowners may still find hope.
Daniel Aldrich, a Northeastern University political science professor who studies post-disaster recovery, said coastal areas hit by floods may not see as much assistance as urban areas due to the high prevalence of second homes, calling it “not great news” for seasonal homeowners. But Aldrich mentioned a secondary option previously used by homeowners in another state known for seasonal residences and disasters.
After Hurricane Ian hit Florida in 2022, a U.S. Small Business Administration spokesperson told a local news outlet that Florida homeowners who lease their second residences as rentals could apply for SBA loans to help with repairs. A second home operated as a “rent-free” residence for a family member could also qualify for an SBA loan, and thousands applied for the loans in the days following Hurricane Ian, the spokesperson said.
Maine is encouraging anyone with property and infrastructure damage to report it by calling 211 or to complete surveys found on an online flood assistance hub Gov. Janet Mills launched last week. The surveys are not applications for nor guarantees of financial assistance but will help the state determine if it meets a threshold for Mills to request a federal disaster declaration, similar to one Maine will seek for the Dec. 18 wind and rain storm.
Maine’s famed lobster fishing industry is also mulling next steps while recovering from the storms. Virginia Olsen, political director and executive liaison for the Maine Lobstering Union Local 207, said she has asked fishermen to take and share photos of damage with their local town offices. Olsen said she also spoke with the offices of U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and U.S. Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, to explain that not every facility is able to insure docks that are wooden, and even those with insurance will likely exceed damage caps.
While bigger boats were largely spared, the back-to-back storms took out buildings, skiffs, walkways and other equipment while making many docks “very unstable,” Olsen said, mentioning Stonington, Deer Isle and Corea as among harder-hit areas.
“I’ve heard of some Down East commercial operations closing for the rest of the year,” Olsen, a fifth-generation lobster fisherman living in Stonington, added. “This is the most damage I’ve ever seen to our infrastructure.”
The popular summer destinations of Wells, Kennebunk, Kennebunkport and Old Orchard Beach were among Maine’s coastal towns that were hit particularly hard, Megan Arsenault, deputy director of the York County Emergency Management Agency, said Monday.
Old Orchard Beach joins places like Bar Harbor and Bath with more than a quarter of homes not owner-occupied and thus not qualifying for FEMA relief, per census data. In Saco, where Camp Ellis was ravaged by the storms, 31.5 percent of units are not owner-occupied and will not qualify for FEMA relief, while 54.4 percent of homes in Portland, the state’s largest city that saw heavy flooding eclipse a record set in the 1978 blizzard, are not owner-occupied.
Initial cost and damage estimates are not yet available, after York County officials focused on immediate cleanup and debris removal efforts over the weekend, but Arsenault said residents should contact their insurance firms, while fishing companies are directed to the Department of Marine Resources for assistance.
“It certainly surpasses what we’ve seen in recent history,” Arsenault said of the damage.
Similarly, Hancock County Emergency Management Agency Director Andrew Sankey said it is too early to give estimates on damage after the recent storms. Sankey noted 29 of 38 municipalities in Hancock County are coastal towns, and the approach to the Bass Harbor Ferry Terminal was repaired Sunday to allow Versant Power crews to access nearby islands.
Another round of snow in Maine is expected Tuesday, but Sankey said Monday’s sunny, calm weather was “welcomed by everyone and an opportunity to catch our breath.”